Action

RoboCop Redux

/ / Movie Reviews
  • Title: RoboCop (2014)
  • IMDB: link

RobocopReleased in 1987, RoboCop holds a special spot in the pantheon of 80’s action movies for anyone who has seen it (and its various lesser sequels and spin-offs). Written by Edward Neumeier and Michael Miner (by far the best script either has done), director Paul Verhoeven‘s satirical, violent, and over-the-top tale of a critically wounded Detroit police officer turned into the first cybernetic soldier by an ominous corporation with its own agenda gets an obligatory, and completely unnecessary, remake. Thankfully this one fares better than the last Verhoeven film Hollywood decided to remake.

Missing the original’s biting wit (none of those terrific commercials this time around) or primal sense of justice and revenge, and substituting a PG-13 gruesomeness for the original’s R-rated violence (meaning we get a much smaller body count but several shots of scientists poking around inside of the still-human pieces of our hero), the new film makes several interesting choices that allow the story to take a slightly different path than the original.

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Everything is Awesome

/ / Movie Reviews
  • Title: The LEGO Movie
  • IMDB: link

The LEGO MovieWith a mix of stop-motion and CGI effects (some purposely cheesy enough to show you the string holding figures in frame) The LEGO Movie delivers an energetic and enjoyable story with a nice message for kids. A cynical person would note that the film is basically a 100-minute commercial to sell the various (mostly over-priced) specialized sets and figures that make up the LEGO franchise. However, the movie (for the most part) puts the story and characters first while also promoting the basic message of the building blocks that allow you to build anything you can imagine.

Beginning with an awkward opening scene involving a wizard (Morgan Freeman), the film’s villain Lord Business (Will Ferrell), and a prophecy about “The Special,” the movie gets off to a bit of a shaky start (although it does eventually backtrack to put the events into context). Jumping years in the future we’re introduced to our hero, unremarkable construction worker Emmet Brickowoski (Chris Pratt), who finds the mythical Piece of Resistance which can prevent Business’ plans of destruction.

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Samurai Jack #4

/ / Comics

Samurai Jack #4Samurai Jack‘s quest to gather the remaining Threads of Time leads the wanderer to a frosty kingdom deep in the mountains ruled over by the tyrannical Queen Krystle whose android warriors capture Samurai Jack and put him to work in the kitchens.

Although I still enjoyed the issue, especially the early scenes recaping the samurai’s journey to find the village deep in the mountainous wilderness, Samurai Jack #4 is by far the weakest issue of the new series complete with a queen who enjoys cake while her peasants starve (and even, unfortunately, at one point utters a trademark phrase causing anyone knowing their French history to groan).

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Samurai Jack #3

/ / Comics

Samurai Jack #3Samurai Jack‘s quest to gather the remaining Threads of Time leads him to a thriving Mediterrean town in the middle of nowhere and the city’s friendly champion Gloer who holds a dark secret. At first everything in the town seems normal to the samuarai, and Gloer even proves a great host sparring with the time-displaced warrior. However, upon inquiring about the Threads of Time things take a dark turn.

Once again staying true the the original cartoon, the latest issue by Jim Zub and artist Andy Suriano offers us a tale where all is not what it seems. The truth is only discovered when the town is overrun with minions from Aku who prove too much for Samurai Jack and the Gloer (who seems reluctant to fight).

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Frozen

/ / Movie Reviews
  • Title: Frozen
  • IMDB: link

FrozenDisney’s latest animated feature Frozen is an odd mix of old school Disney style and modern sensibilities that works better than expected. Loosely adapted from Hans Christian Andersen‘s tale of The Snow Queen, the script by Jennifer Lee certainly fits in the pantheon of Disney Princess fairy tale films but with one major difference in terms of story that it apart from movies like Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, The Little Mermaid, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, and others. Although it has romantic subplots, the main love story in the film isn’t romantic love but sororal love.

Set in a port kingdom near the icy fjords of Norway, we first meet young Anna (Kristen Bell) and Elsa (Idina Menzel) as children playing in their father’s castle. Elsa has been gifted with the power to create and control snow and ice which she uses to please her sister’s love of snow. However, a tragic accident causes Elsa to hide her powers from everyone and seclude herself from even her sister’s affections.

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